Benfica have confirmed the signing of Jakub Kaminski from 1. FC Köln, with the Portuguese champions activating the release clause in the 24-year-old's contract. The fee has been reported at around €17m, though some reports in Germany put Köln's guaranteed take closer to €20m once add-ons are included. Kaminski has signed a five-year contract at the Estádio da Luz running to June 2031, with his new deal carrying a €60m release clause of its own. Köln also negotiated a 10% sell-on clause on any future transfer, rising to 25% if he were to leave again before the end of summer 2026.
Benfica moved for Kaminski to add pace and directness down the left flank under manager Marco Silva, with the Poland winger's ability to cut inside onto his stronger foot marking him out as one of the Bundesliga's more productive wide players last season. He is the third signing of Benfica's summer rebuild, following the arrival of centre-back Clément Lenglet, as the club look to strengthen their attacking options for a season that will include Champions League football.
For Köln, it is a significant financial win. The club made Kaminski's loan move from Wolfsburg permanent only last summer, paying around €5.5m for a player who had struggled for regular football at Wolfsburg. Selling him on for roughly three times that fee a year later represents a major profit, even accounting for the sell-on clause retained by Wolfsburg in the original deal. Köln's sporting director, Thomas Kessler, praised the player on his exit, saying Kaminski had "impressed us completely last season – both as a player and as a person" and that the club were "proud that we were able to provide an environment in which he could consistently fulfil his potential again." Kessler added that Köln had expected interest given his performances and thanked him for his commitment.
Kaminski's departure leaves a gap in Köln's attack that will need filling. He was an ever-present in the Bundesliga last season, starting all 34 league matches and racking up 3,000-plus minutes, seven goals and three assists — ten direct goal involvements in total, built on a high volume of crosses and created chances from the left side. That level of output from a wide forward, delivered over a full season rather than in patches, was central to Köln's campaign and is not easily replaced without reinvesting a chunk of the fee they have just received.
The move also continues Kaminski's rebuild after a difficult spell at Wolfsburg, where he never nailed down a regular starting role following his move from Lech Poznań in 2022. The loan-turned-permanent switch to Köln gave him consistent minutes and a clear role as the focal point of attacks down the left, and he repaid that trust with his best statistical season to date. He has also become a fixture for Poland, winning 31 caps, and arrives at Benfica with his stock higher than at any previous point in his career.
At Benfica, Kaminski is expected to compete for a starting berth on the left of Silva's attack, offering directness and end product from wide areas in a squad being reshaped for a season with continental football. How quickly he adapts to Portuguese football and a bigger club's weekly expectations will determine whether the fee proves good value, but the profile — a young, in-form international winger with a proven scoring and creating record — fits the kind of signing Benfica have targeted this summer.